Changes in the rules for calling an ambulance in Kazakhstan

The country's Minister of Health, Akmaral Alnazarova, commented on the new rules for calling an ambulance in Kazakhstan.

According to her, the discussion of the proposed changes was completed recently, and the document has not yet received official approval. However, according to the planned innovations, patients belonging to the 4th category of urgency will be able to call an ambulance only on weekdays from 08:00 to 20:00, and on Saturday. At other times, they will have to independently contact the emergency departments located in medical institutions.

"Initially, the draft order stated that the ambulance service would operate around the clock for patients of categories 1, 2 and 3. For the 4th category, primary health care will be provided. In order to improve the availability and speed of medical care, it is proposed to transfer responsibility for the 4th category at night to emergency medical care stations, and to leave the working hours of the clinics from 08:00 to 20:00, including Saturdays,” Alnazarova specified on the sidelines of the Majilis.

To a clarifying question from journalists about whether this means that patients in the 4th category will only come until 20:00, and after that they need to contact the emergency medical care themselves, the minister confirmed that at night, patients in this category will have to contact the emergency medical care.

It is worth noting that the new version of the rules for the provision of emergency medical care provides for the allocation of 4 categories of urgency for calling emergency medical care.

The first category includes cases when the patient's condition poses an immediate threat to life and requires immediate intervention. The second category covers situations when there is a potential threat to life without medical care. The third category concerns conditions that pose a potential danger to health. The fourth category refers to acute diseases or exacerbations of chronic illnesses that are not accompanied by sudden and severe disturbances, and there is no threat to life and health.